by Brook Wilder
It made no sense to include them on this.
I pushed open the door, surprised it wasn’t locked, and stepped inside, my gun at my side. My heart seized in my chest as I realized that I was staring at Harley Travis.
Thank God!
After a quick assessment of the space, I hurried over to her, seeing the relief in her eyes. Pulling down the rag, I started working on her zip ties.
“Thank God,” she breathed, her voice hoarse. “That rag was hideously awful!”
“Is there anyone here?” I asked softly, snapping her ties with my knife.
“N-no,” she stammered as the door opened.
I turned to see Zack standing there, his gun raised, and surprise written on his face.
“You found her.”
It wasn’t a question, but more like a resigned statement.
“I did,” I swallowed as I snapped the last tie. “Come on, we need to get you out of here.”
“Freeze! Police!”
I froze as police started to pour into the warehouse, their guns drawn. I held up my hands, watching as Zack turned to do the same.
“Officer Warren. I’ve found the missing person.”
“Syd?”
Luke stepped forward, lowering his gun.
“Is that you?”
I blew out a breath, giving the young officer a smile.
“It’s me. I found Harley Travis.”
“Thank God,” Harley sighed, rubbing her wrists. “It’s about time someone found me.”
I looked for Zack, but there was a swarm of police filling the building, wondering where he had gotten off to. Likely to report to Grant that his daughter had been found. The chief pushed his way through the crowd, his hefty stomach covered with a bullet proof vest.
“Ms. Travis are you hurt?”
“Of course, I am,” Harley said, wrapping her arms around her tiny waist. “I want to go home.”
“We will get you there as soon as we can,” the chief promised. “Luke, escort her to the ambulance. Those wounds need to be looked at.”
Luke stepped forward and led Harley away as the chief looked at me.
“Congratulations, Warren. You did it.”
I accepted his congrats with a nod.
“There was no one else here. There’s still the matter of finding who did this.”
The chief nodded.
“I agree. You are going to take the lead on questioning our witness. I need you at the station to clean this mess up and find out who we are after.”
“Got it,” I said, elation welling up in my chest.
I was happy that Harley was alive, that she didn’t seem to be hurt on the outside. What emotions she would be dealing with would come with time and some good therapy.
“And you will be the one to arrest Hale.”
My eyes flew to his face, terror worming its way into my veins.
“W-what?”
The chief looked at me grimly.
“You heard me. He’s wanted in an assault earlier today. We have to make a statement, Warren. This cannot be allowed in our town.”
I swallowed hard.
“Chief, I was there.”
“I know,” the chief said heavily, wiping his hand over his face. “But you didn’t nearly kill the kid, did you Warren? This is your saving grace to make it up to me. Arrest Hale and show me you can still do this job without getting all emotional. He’s a criminal, and he needs to be in jail for what he’s done.”
“Chief…” I started, unsure of what to say.
Arrest Zack?
He eyed me, sympathy intermixed with regret and anger.
“I told you, Sydney, there might come a time where you have to choose. This is now that time. If you don’t arrest him, I will have someone else do it.”
“No,” I said quickly, holstering my weapon. “I will do it.”
It had to be me. I was the only person he wouldn’t fight.
The chief handed me a set of cuffs, and I walked through the crowd of police and forensics that had arrived, ready to process the scene. I didn’t want to do this, but it had to be done. Zack had stepped out of line by assaulting the kid, and as a result the kid had squealed on him. There was nothing I could do.
Oh, but what I wanted to do was tell him to run, to get away from here. He wouldn’t make it far, but now I wished I had told him to back off at the clubhouse and done this myself. At least he would have had a chance to flee.
I found him just outside the warehouse, eyeing a group of cops that were itching to have him step out of line. He saw me and straightened, a grin on his face.
“We found her.”
“We did,” I said slowly, my heart breaking. “I’m going to have to ask you to turn around, Zack.”
His grin slid off his face and his eyes darkened.
“What?”
I held up the cuffs, struggling to get the words out.
“I… you are under arrest for the assault on the informant earlier.”
“You’re fucking kidding me,” he said, his voice low. “You were there. It got us this information.”
I shook my head.
“I can’t, I have to bring you in Zack.”
He took a step closer, and some of the cops moved in, their hands on their guns. I waved them off. That was the last thing I needed right now.
“It’s me, Syd.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“I know.”
His eyes searched mine, and I saw the betrayal in his depths. I hated it.
“You need help, Syd?”
I turned to see Luke standing off to the side, concern on his face. I sucked in a breath and shook my head.
“Turn around Mr. Hale.”
Zack swore but did as I said. My hands were shaking as I brought his behind his back and snapped the cuffs on. The sound was loud and grating in my ears, and I wanted to scream in frustration and fury. This wasn’t right. This was not what was supposed to happen today.
“You have the right to remain silent,” I started instead, seeing the tension on his shoulders.
He was quiet while I went through his rights, my voice sounded odd even to my ears as I rattled off the paragraph by heart.
“Do you have any questions?”
“No,” he barked, shifting his stance. “Can we go now?”
Thankfully, Luke came over and grabbed Zack’s arm.
“I got him.”
I didn’t say anything as Luke led Zack away, my heart aching in my chest.
When had this gone wrong?
Chapter Eighteen
Zack
Sydney had arrested me.
I shifted on the hard leather seat, the rage boiling inside.
And my heart… I didn’t want to think about the pain in my chest. She had arrested me.
My Sydney.
I let out a groan and leaned my head on the cage in front of me. This was not how the day was supposed to go. I hadn’t even told Grant that we had found Harley unharmed. No, now Sydney would get that chance, and I would have to live with the fact that I had let my mentor down, at least in his eyes.
Shit, this day had gone to shit.
“You know she didn’t want to do it.”
I raised my head and caught the eye of the police officer in the mirror, the one that was escorting me to jail.
“What the fuck did you say?”
He cleared his throat.
“Sydney, she didn’t want to do it. I could see it all over her face.”
“And what do you know about her face?”
He let out a chuckle.
“Are you kidding me? I have been her partner since the moment she walked into the station. I tried, but she wasn’t interested, so don’t even think that’s what is going on here.”
I exhaled, glad that I wasn’t going to have to kill him somehow for messing with Sydney.
“Why do you care?”
He gave a shrug.
“Hell, I don’t know. Yo
u just look so pissed off about it, and I don’t want you to be pissed at her. She struggled with arresting you. I’m sure the chief didn’t give her a choice.”
I leaned back on the seat. He was probably telling the truth. Though I couldn’t see her face, I could hear it in her voice as she read me my rights that she wasn’t happy about having to do so.
But she had still done it.
“Don’t give up on her,” the police officer said quietly. “She’s only doing her job.”
I didn’t want to give up on her. I hadn’t planned to do so either. Well, until this. Hell, I was used to going to jail, but to be put there by Sydney? That was a low blow.
The car was silent the rest of the way, the officer not as rough with me as some had been as he escorted me into the station and sat me in one of the interrogation rooms. He hooked the handcuff to the table before walking to the door.
“You need anything?”
“No,” I growled, shifting in the chair. “Thanks.”
He nodded, pausing at the door on his way out.
“I’ve got her back, you know. I will watch out for her, until… well, you can get outta here.”
I doubted it was going to happen this time.
“Thanks. I appreciate it.”
He nodded and shut the door, leaving me alone.
This room didn’t have a mirror in it, nothing but four walls that had sound-proof padding lining it. The handcuff clinked against the table leg as I shifted on the hard seat. Hell, would Sydney have to give her testimony to put me behind bars? I didn’t want to see that.
And I was sure she wouldn’t be a willing partner.
Groaning, I wiped a hand over my face. I was supposed to be telling Grant that we had found Harley, then figuring out what was left for me and Syd to re-coup in our relationship.
But now… hell, I didn’t know what was going to happen. She had always known about my past, something I had shared with her the first few times we had gone out.
Well, when I had thought this was more than just a fuck and run.
***
I nervously drove down the road, wiping one palm on my jeans. Sydney sat next to me, looking fucking gorgeous as always in her short dress, showing me a great deal of her legs in the process. I had requested the dress tonight, wanting to make it special.
After all, you only have one senior prom. I had been drunk off my ass for mine.
“Where are we going?” she asked as I turned down the next road, the truck rumbling over bumps.
“Somewhere,” I grinned, looking over at her. “Are you sure you don’t want to go back?”
She shook her head.
“If I can’t take you to the prom, then I don’t want to go.”
Inwardly I grinned. Just the thought of her going to that damn dance with anyone else made me clench my jaw. Sydney was mine.
I pulled the truck into the clearing and cut the engine, looking over to see Sydney’s face as she saw what I had done.
“Oh my God, Zack. What is this?”
I reached over and brushed her shoulder with my fingers.
“This is your prom, Syd.”
She made a sound and threw open the door, stepping out onto the grass. I followed her, my hands in my pockets as she took in the blanket on the ground, the clearing a perfect place to view the stars. I had found an old radio in my dad’s house, and it was playing some oldie station, the soft music mingling with the sound of crickets in the grass. Nearby were a couple of plastic cups and a bottle of cheap wine chilling in a bucket of ice. I was glad to see that no one else had disturbed my handiwork.
Sydney turned toward me, and I was surprised to see the tears shining in her eyes.
“You did this for me?”
I nodded, her tears tearing a hole in my chest.
“I did.”
She clasped her hands to her chest.
“I can’t… no one has ever done anything so nice for me before. This is… wow!”
I closed the gap between us, catching one of her tears with my finger before it reached her chin.
“It’s nothing special.”
She sniffed, reaching up to cup my cheek.
“It’s everything Zack. I-I love you.”
Her words cut through me.
“You can’t love me.”
Her hand tightened on my cheek.
“Why not? You are so good to me and you make me happy.”
I stepped out of her reach, pushing a hand through my hair roughly.
“Shit, Syd, I have… I’m not a good guy.”
She moved closer, her eyes still shining.
“So, you aren’t perfect. Neither am I.”
“No,” I interrupted her. “It’s not that. I’m… hell, I have a record Sydney.”
She stopped, and her lips parted.
“A record?”
I hated the look in her eyes. It made feel like an ass for even knowing her.
“I’m a criminal Sydney. I’ve done things in my life that I’m not proud of.”
“Oh,” Sydney answered, closing the distance between us. “Is that all?”
I stared at her.
“What?”
Her lips curved in a smile as she slid her arms around my neck, pulling me against her until our bodies were flush together.
“I love you,” she said softly. “I don’t care if you think you aren’t a good guy. I see something in you, Zack, something that keeps me coming back for more.”
I was humbled by her words, the earnest look in her eyes.
“Don’t ever leave me,” I whispered, tightening my hold on her.
“I don’t plan to,” she laughed, hugging me close.
***
I shook out of the memory, a frown on my face. She hadn’t left all those years ago. That night, I had taken the one thing she could give just one person: her virginity. That night, I had whispered words into her ear, promises of the future and what we had in store for us. I had told her how special she was to me, but never once did I tell her that I loved her. No, that had come just two days ago, realizing that I had given up the best damn thing in my life for… what? For this? I had driven her away with my thoughts of grander things with the DHMC. She had left because I had nearly ruined her life, and right now I was ruining her career.
Whether she admitted to it or not.
Why did life have to be so damn complicated?
Tapping my fingers along the steel table, I thought about my current situation. Once word got to Grant, I knew he would try and spring me out of there. But would the charges hold? Was I looking at jail-time? I wasn’t scared of jail. Hell, that was where I probably belonged given my record.
But it would put me further away from Sydney and the things she and I needed to discuss. As a police officer, she couldn’t have a boyfriend in jail. I would be that black mark on her career, on her life.
We couldn’t be together.
“Shit,” I muttered to the empty room.
It was true. We couldn’t be together. If I went down for this crime, she couldn’t be anywhere near me.
The thought didn’t settle well with me.
Chapter Nineteen
Sydney
I grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge before shutting the door, my emotions in turmoil. The station was abuzz with activity, all hands on deck in processing the warehouse and the next steps in finding the asshole that had kidnapped Harley Travis. There were things I had to do, such as interview the victim and get a timeline of events that would aid us in our investigation.
But all I could think about was Zack and the way he had looked at me before I had slapped the cuffs on him and hauled him to jail. My chest literally ached with sadness at this turn of events. Zack had no one other than the club in his life, no one that would come to his aid and bail him out of this one. He couldn’t go to prison over the assault, he just couldn’t.
